Couplets › Humility
From Bang-e-Dara · originally composed in Urdu
Nahin hai chiz nikammi koi zamane mein
Koi bura nahin qudrat ke kar-khane mein
Koi bura nahin qudrat ke kar-khane mein
“There is no worthless thing anywhere in the world; nothing is bad in the great workshop of nature.”
Romanहिन्दी
नहीं है चीज़ निकम्मी कोई ज़माने में
कोई बुरा नहीं क़ुदरत के कार-ख़ाने में
कोई बुरा नहीं क़ुदरत के कार-ख़ाने में
The couplet in Devanagari — it carries the authenticity of the original, and every Hindi reader can read it.
♪ Hear the coupletA recitation in a synthesized voice.
The Interpretation
Iqbal closes the squirrel's reply with a wide claim: nothing creation made is useless. Each thing has its own gift and its own place, and what looks inferior from one angle is simply suited to a different task. The verse refuses contempt, whether aimed at others or at oneself.
For You, Today
When you are tempted to write off a person, a skill or a part of yourself as useless, look again for its proper use. Most things judged worthless are only mismatched to the wrong task.
In the same spirit
Apne mann mein doob kar pa ja suragh-e-zindagi
Tu agar mera nahin banta na ban, apna to ban
Tu agar mera nahin banta na ban, apna to ban
Dive into your own self and find the trace of life. If you will not be mine, then do not — but at least become your own.
Selfhood · Self-Knowledge
Lab pe aati hai dua ban ke tamanna meri
Zindagi shama ki surat ho khudaya meri
Zindagi shama ki surat ho khudaya meri
My longing rises to my lips as a prayer: O God, may my life be like a candle's flame.
Hope · Aspiration
Parwaz hai dono ki isi ek faza mein
Kargas ka jahan aur hai, shaheen ka jahan aur
Kargas ka jahan aur hai, shaheen ka jahan aur
Both take flight in this very same sky — yet the vulture's world is one thing, and the falcon's another.
The Falcon · Self-Knowledge